STORAGE HACKS FOR TINY SPACES

The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) reports that the average size of a master bedroom in a large home is 411 square feet. In a more modest house or apartment, however, it’s only 231 square feet. What if you have a small bedroom and lots of belongings to cram into it? Your space might quickly seem tight and cluttered. If you’re looking for storage ideas for small bedroom, consider these seven storage hacks for tiny spaces:

1. INSTALL SHELVES AND A CORNER CLOTHES RACK.

By lining the perimeter of your bedroom wall with shelves, you’ll give yourself a lot of extra storage space for a variety of items. These shelves will not stand on your floor like a bookcase, so they won’t take up any floor space. You can begin installing them a few feet down from the ceiling, and then install another row a foot or more beneath that, and so on. This shelving will keep clutter off your desk and dresser and floor.

Store items you don’t access regularly on the highest shelf, such as decorative trinkets, out-of-season shoes, and books you’ve already read but want to hold onto. Install a rod beneath the lowest, corner shelf so that it can also double as a clothes rack. You can hang shirts, dresses, pants, and other clothes directly on this rod and access them as needed.

2. FAVOR A BED WITH STORAGE SPACES.

Pick a bed with some room underneath it, so you can use the empty space for storage. If your bed doesn’t have any space beneath it already, you can add risers to elevate it. Then measure the space beneath your bed and purchase plastic storage bins that will easily slide in and out. Utilizing this space is an excellent way to store extra blankets and linens or off-season clothes such as sweaters and sweatshirts.

You can also buy a storage bed. Some specialty “storage beds” come with roll-out drawers beneath the bed, where you can place clothes. Higher beds can even have two rows of drawers. Other beds have slide-out shelves built into the headboard.

3. PUT HOOKS ON THE BACK OF YOUR BEDROOM DOOR.

By placing hooks on the back of your door, you’ll give yourself extra hanging space. The door is a fantastic place to hang cumbersome coats, bathrobes, towels, or better yet – a hamper. If you use a hanging hamper bag instead of a basket, you’ll save a lot of floor space. Make sure the hamper is secured on both sides so that it doesn’t fall off the door.

4. KEEP YOUR TRASH CAN OUT OF SIGHT.

Most bedrooms have a trash can. Tuck this away underneath your desk to keep it out of sight so your room seems less cluttered. Or store it in a night-stand style piece of furniture in which you can roll it out by opening a cabinet or lean it out by tugging on the handle and pulling it downward. This nightstand can also hold an extra drawer or two above the trash can compartment for additional bedroom storage.

5. HANG YOUR BRACELETS AND NECKLACES ON THE WALL.

Instead of allowing your jewelry to take up space in boxes in your dresser, create a cork board that you can adhere to the wall. For an added decorative touch, put an attractive frame around the board. Use large thumb tacks and hang your necklaces and bracelets from them.

In a dresser, for instance, you might have a sock compartment that allows you to stack your rolled socks in two rows on top of each other without them rolling around and taking up too much room in the drawer. In a desk, you can make a small compartment for binder clips, another for rubber bands, and a narrow one for pencils and pens. You can also buy furniture that has these organizers already installed.

7. ORGANIZE YOUR BEDROOM CLOSET.

You can save a lot of space in the closet by making use of a few organizing hacks:

Store items you rarely need in your suitcases. Most people own a suitcase or two but don’t often travel. Rather than leave your suitcases merely taking up room in your closet, fill them with items you rarely access. Empty suitcases are a great place to store out of season clothes. Put them in vacuum bags to compact them even further. If you have multiple suitcases that fit inside each other, save room by putting one inside the other and then filling only the smallest one with rarely-accessed items.

Purchase or create a shoe organizer. You can purchase a hanging shoe organizer hangs from a hook on the back of your closet door. These shoe organizers have separate pockets in which you can slide a variety of sandals, tennis shoes, flip-flops, and other non-clunky shoes to get them off the floor and make your selection of a pair quicker. If you don’t wish to buy a shoe organizer, you can create your own by building a board with several rows of pegs. Turn the shoes over and hang them from the pegs, such that the peg is inside the shoe.

Install towel racks on a side wall of your closet and use them for hanging scarves, ties, belts, and other such items. Alternatively, you can purchase a hanging tie and belt rack. These racks take up the space of only about three hangers.